Rotator cuff strain lands Matsuzaka on DL

BALTIMORE - The Red Sox, as expected, are taking no chances with Daisuke Matsuzaka, placing him on the 15-day disabled list with what the team is calling a mild rotator cuff strain after the Japanese righthander underwent an MRI yesterday in Boston.

Matsuzaka was planning to join the club here last night, his place on the 25-man roster taken by Jeff Bailey, the hot-hitting Pawtucket infielder-outfielder whose contract was purchased by the Sox. Bailey went 0 for 1 as a pinch hitter in the Sox' 5-2, 13-inning win over the Orioles.

The Sox don't need another starting pitcher until Tuesday, when they are expected to call up Justin Masterson for a third time. And why not? Masterson has given up only a run in each of his two previous big league starts, including the one May 20 when he went 6 1/3 innings against the Royals in Fenway Park, allowing just three hits.

Masterson made his Triple A debut Thursday night for Pawtucket and again was solid, allowing just two runs (one earned) in six innings of a 5-2 win over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, the Yankees' top affiliate.

Manager Terry Francona came off a conference call with general manager Theo Epstein to make the announcement after Matsuzaka was administered an MRI under the supervision of team medical director Thomas Gill.

"There was no structural changes, which is really good news," Francona said. "The final diagnosis is a mild deltoid rotator cuff strain. The best way we can see to attack this is we'll DL him, take the time down, strengthen him, get him ready to pitch the rest of the season. That's kind of where we are."

The soonest Matsuzaka is eligible to come off the DL is June 12. The Sox are home against the Orioles that night.

Matsuzaka is the American League's only undefeated pitcher (minimum five decisions) with an 8-0 record. He is tied with Joe Saunders of the Angels for the most wins in the American League, and his 2.53 ERA is second to Cliff Lee of the Indians (1.88).

Matsuzaka does not rank among the league leaders in pitches per start, but that doesn't mean he has had a lot of easy innings. He is tied with Kansas City's Gil Meche for most pitches per batter (4.08), and his 17.52 pitches per inning means it would take him an average of 158 pitches to go nine.

The Sox, who are well known for taking a conservative tack with their pitchers - earlier this month, they placed Clay Buchholz on the DL with a torn fingernail and are letting him take his time to get back - figured to shut down Matsuzaka, especially with his history of epic pitch counts in Japan.

"The timetable is going to be completely on when he's ready to pitch, with health, and sustain that," Francona said. "I don't think this is anything we think is going to be [prolonged]. If it's not his day [to pitch] or something, it might be longer than 15 days. I think we'll be OK."

A real yes man

When Bailey got on a plane yesterday morning, he had no idea whether he would be activated, the Sox not yet having made a decision on Matsuzaka.

"They just told me, 'You're going, and they might send you right back,' " Bailey said, smiling. "I wasn't going to say no."

This is the second big league call-up for Bailey, who hit a home run off Detroit's Nate Robertson during a three-game stay last July. He has been one of the minor leagues' hottest hitters, with 13 home runs this month, 16 overall. He wasn't supposed to play Thursday night in Pawtucket, but manager Ron Johnson inserted him in the lineup at the last moment and Bailey responded with two home runs.

"I've been getting myself in good counts," Bailey said modestly, "and haven't been missing pitches you sometimes miss."

Bailey also was at the center of a dust-up between Scranton and the PawSox, when Scranton pitcher Dan McCutchen threw two pitches behind him in the fifth inning and was ejected. According to Bailey, the PawSox expected someone would be thrown at, because a couple of Scranton players had been hit twice in the series. Johnson, Bailey said, had told Scranton manager Dave Miley before the game that Bailey might be called up by the big club, and asked him to tell his pitchers not to throw at him.

"I guess that message didn't get conveyed," Bailey said.

"I had no problem with [Scranton throwing at a PawSox batter], but it was done the wrong way. I thought that was [McCutchen's] shot when he threw the first one behind me. Then he threw the next one behind me, and they threw him out of the game before I could do anything."

Bailey became the fifth PawSox position player to be summoned by the Red Sox this season, joining Brandon Moss, Joe Thurston, Jonathan Van Every, and Jed Lowrie. His purchase brings the Sox' 40-man roster to 40 for the first time this season. "It's not that bad," Bailey said of his call-up. "I've known all these guys for five years. It's comfortable."

Drew scratched

Outfielder J.D. Drew was scratched with what Francona called vertigo. Drew was sidelined last season for a game with vertigo, and Coco Crisp was sidelined earlier this season with the same condition . . . Julio Lugo (3 for 19) sat against Daniel Cabrera, with Alex Cora (11 for 23, .478) getting the start at shortstop, going 0 for 2. Despite the gaudy numbers, Cora tried a suicide squeeze with Crisp on third base in the second and failed to get the bunt down, Crisp tagged out easily by catcher Ramon Hernandez . . . Kevin Youkilis was back in the lineup after missing three games with a sore right hand . . . Jason Varitek's throwing error in the second, which led to Baltimore's first run, was his second in two games. Varitek had gone 66 games over the last two seasons without an error. After going 0 for 5 last night, he's in a 0-for-18 slump . . . Bad day for two former Sox pitchers: Kason Gabbard was sent to the minors by the Rangers and Lenny DiNardo was designated for assignment by the Athletics. Better days for Bryan Corey: Designated twice in a month's time by the Sox, Corey has found at least a temporary home with the Padres. In his first nine games with San Diego, Corey is 1-0 with a 0.93 ERA. Opponents are batting .133 against him.